The South Texas College of Law Houston community joyously celebrated Lunar New Year this week with an event hosted by the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA). Festivities included a traditional lion dance, a local K-pop performance, community guest speakers, and delicious Asian cuisine.
Thuy-Anna Pham, third-year STCL Houston student and APALSA president, coordinated the event, intentionally aligning the evening’s message with the law school’s centennial themes for this year: honoring the past, celebrating the present, and building the future.
“Tonight, we honor the past by paying tribute to our cultural traditions and respect to our ancestors,” Pham said. “We celebrate the present by gathering and feasting with family, and we usher in the new year to prepare for what is ahead and to build the future.” Pham is a third-generation successor of Mai’s Restaurant in Houston, in addition to attending law school and serving as president of the Women’s Law Society.
“APALSA was excited to celebrate Lunar New Year with STCL Houston,” Pham said. “It was a wonderful evening, and it was great to come together with so many diverse student groups, faculty and staff members, and guests from the community for this fun and meaningful event. Happy Year of the Rabbit!”
President and Dean Michael F. Barry provided a welcome and greeting to the crowd, and the program also featured guest speakers and distinguished alumni the Honorable Theresa Chang, ’96 and Gordan Quan ’77. They spoke to the attendees about the importance of diversity, traditions, and Asian representation in the legal community.
“When I began law school, I wanted to advance my engineering career and climb the corporate ladder, but one of my mentors encouraged me to seek the legal profession full-time,” Chang said. “My mentor said we needed more Asian American attorneys because when you understand the culture, you can better represent the clients. So I challenge all of you – including the Asian American students – to understand other cultures; get out of your comfort zone and understand all cultures so you can better represent and understand your clients.”
Quan added an historical perspective in his comments. “There were only three Asian Americans attending South Texas when I was here,” he recalled. “When I graduated, I wondered if anyone would hire an Asian American. South Texas has come a long way in 100 years, and the Asian American community has come a long way, too. We have more work to do, but we have a big future ahead. I know I’ll be saying, ‘Hey, that person went to South Texas — and that person stood up and made a difference.’”
